Garfield Logan is a Family Man
by Dragonkyng
Summary: A life built on a lie, lying about his nights away from home, a fragile house of cards, and the winds of fate will come to blow them away, and it will take all he is to hold on to his family.


A life built on a lie, lying about his nights away from home, a fragile house of cards, and the winds of fate will come to blow them away, and it will take all he is to hold on to his family.

* * *

Prolouge:

* * *

The mall was filled with noise as families fought to move through the crowd, in search of the perfect presents. The smells of eggnog, peppermint, pine trees permeated the air as he took a deep breath. Through the two way mirror, he could see the line of children and their parents, all waiting to see him. The beard on his face scratched his skin, and the big red suit was a little too hot, but he was ready. He enjoyed this job. Making sure his "belly" was in the right space, he stood up. A woman dressed up as an elf walked into the room.

"Santa? They're ready." He smiled and walked out of the "North Pole Cabin," that also served as a break room for Santa and the elves. The children screamed as they saw him, parents taking photos like crazy. "HOHOHO," he called out. "Merry Christmas!" Taking his seat, the children all began to line up to sit on his lap. The first girl climbed, braces still in her mouth. "Susie," a small voice called out from the earpiece, coming from the elf at the head of the line, getting the names of the children to put on the complimentary photo card, and to feed to Santa.

"Well, hello Susie…" He said making his voice sound as close to what people think Santa sounded like.

"Hi Santa…" she said. "Have you been a good girl this year?" Susie nodded. "Wonderful! What would you like Santa to bring you this year?" "I'd like a new Katie doll." He smiled "Of course! Now go pick a present from the pile." He leaned in. "Pick a red one…" Susie eagerly climbed off Santa's lap and went to the pile of wrapped presents. Inside each on was a "free gift" from each of the stores in the mall, to encourage parents to buy more from that store. Give a free outfit for your teddy bear, and parents will probably have to make a new one. But the red presents were from the Katie doll store. A free toy set for a one of their dolls. Santa smiled as she unwrapped the gift and her parents got the card with their photo.

Soon the line moved on, more children coming up.

"Eddie," "Candy!"

"Rebecca," "A new phone!

"James," "A Skateboard!"

"Julie," "A better baby brother."

After several hours, the line thinned down, the entrance to the "North Pole" closed for an hour, to empty the line, and let Santa have a break. Once the last child went through the line, Santa got up from his seat and went to the cabin, only to see something out of the corner of his eye. A man dressed in a large trench coat, went into a store, looking around. Santa sighed to himself, and went into the cabin, quickly throwing off his red velvet coat and pants, the belly joining them on the ground. The beard and long hair joined them.

The man in the trench coat walked calmly up to the cashier of the toy store placing his gun on the counter. "Don't scream, don't move, don't touch anything," he said. "Or I'll shoot every child in here. If anytime you call security, I'll shoot anyone near me. Now empty the register." He handed her a gallon sized freezer bag. "Large bills first, until the bag is full, then zip it up." The cashier did as she was told, shaking. "Hey," the robber said. "Don't be that way; it's going to be okay."

Once the bag was full, she zipped it up and handed it to him. "Merry Christmas," he said, placing a candy cane on the counter, a bright green ribbon wrapped around it in a bow. He placed the bag in his coat, it joining the nine other bags. He hadn't counted it, but he easily had five thousand dollars. And he knew he didn't have to worry about security, because they didn't want him to start firing into the crowd. Better he take money, than human life. They called him the Grinch, and he came out every Christmas. He hit a different mall every day from December 1st until Christmas eve, making over half a million each year. The cops tried to stop him, but by the time they found which mall he was at, he was already gone.

"Santa" now back in his street clothes, made his way to the halls behind the scenes in the mall, a maze of paths that lead to each of the stores' back rooms. Now away from the line of sight of the man in the coat, he began to run, heading to where he knew the man would be headed. The Katie Doll Store. During Christmas, it was the busiest and made the most money. He just hoped he would get there in time.

The Grinch walked into the store, girls all running around looking at the dolls, parents trying to get them under control. He went to the cashier, and placed his gun on the counter. "Don't scream, don't move, don't touch anything," he recited. The girl behind the counter then did something he was unprepared for. She passed out. She didn't make any noise, but just fell to the ground. But it was enough to attract the attention of one of the mothers, stupid enough to scream out, "HE'S GOT A GUN!" The Grinch turned to her and pointed his gun at her. The rest of the store exploded, as Mothers and Fathers pulled their children to the ground. The Grinch saw security running over, people outside running away. The Grinch fired a shot at the large mannequin "Katie" doll, blowing its head off. "Don't come in here!" he called out. He knew he had to find a way out, and fast.

Suddenly a little girl called out, "You're a big meanie!" He snarled and grabbed her from her mother's grasp. The mother tried to grab her, calling out "Susie!" The Grinch fired at the ground near her, the mother covering her head. Which she looked up, The Grinch had dragged Susie to the door of the store, facing the guards. "Get me a ride out of here, or this…" The Grinch placed his gun at Susie's temple. "Will happen to the rest of the children here." He put his finger on the trigger. "Oh, and by the way…" he cocked the gun. "Merry Christmas." The back door of the store was thrown open, a man running out of the back room, jumping over the counter, and tackling The Grinch, knocking both him and Susie to the ground. The gun clattered away out of the store. Santa stood up, the hat falling from his head, revealing his sandy blonde hair. Susie jumped up and ran to her mother. Santa rolled over The Grinch.

"And a Happy New Year," Garfield quipped, as he slammed is foot down on the robber's face, knocking him out.

* * *

GARFIELD LOGAN IS FAMILY MAN

* * *

The door opened as he walked up the path to his house. His wife was there, smiling, but her eyes spoke differently. Their daughter ran outside to greet him. "Daddy!" she said as she latched to his leg. He reached down to pick her up. "Hey, Marie. How was day today?" "Great Daddy! Mommy has been upset though." "Don't worry, it'll be okay." He set her down. "Now go wash up for dinner." She ran into the house, past Raven who stood there. Even with her disguise in place, he could still tell it was her. Her once dark blue hair was black, and her purple irises were now brown. Though he could swear he could see it around the edge of the contact lenses. "Rae…" he said. "It's not that," she said putting up her hand. He could then see the sadness in her purple rimmed brown eyes. "There's man here to talk to you." Garfield walked past her to the living room. There was a man in a suit sitting on the couch. He stood up and held his hand out.

"Are you Logan Dayton?" Garfield hated the name of his cover identity, but he nodded. "Yes, Yes I am." "Well, I'm sorry to be the ones to tell you this, but your parents, Steve and Rita, have passed away."

Garfield felt the wind being knocked out of him, and he forced himself to sit down, feeling sick. His body felt his wife sit next to him, but his mind didn't register it. Instead, his mind was a torrent of emotions.

'Run,' a familiar voice called out. The man across from him began to talk, but he didn't hear him. 'Run!' Garfield got up, walking to the back yard, the man getting up, but Raven told him to let him go. Garfield threw the door open, running outside. 'RUN!' He ran through the trees that lined their back yard, heading out into the forest. Once he was a ways in, the Beast came to the surface running free.

* * *

Watching Starfire leave with Marie smiled softly. She then turned to the mirror hanging in the hallway, but didn't see her reflection. "Can you find them?" she asked the green creature there. Her Beast nodded, and she walked outside into the forest herself. She felt her mind cloud, as the creature clawed to the front of her mind. Her body shift with less pain than the last time, and she was soon running through the forest. The scent led her to a cave, a cave that smelled of him. She walked inside quietly. Since her accepting of her form as part of her now, Raven's Beast had changed slightly. Now more feminine, and catlike, it looked like she was a mix between a lioness and The Beast Original Form. Garfield said she was beautiful.

A sudden sound drew her attention, and she lifted her head. The Beast was there, looking at her. Raven arched her back looking like she was ready to pounce. Garfield smiled, knowing why she was there. He darted to her, and she pounced on him. Claws tore into skin, but not deeply. Teeth sank into flesh, but did not tear it away. The two became one in a mix of passion, lust, and fur.

The morning sun rose up the next morning, Raven waking up, realizing she was nude. She looked around for something to cover up. Garfield who was already up, covered her body with his, unafraid to show his own nakedness to the world. He kissed her, feeling her match his passion. "How are you?" she asked. "I still feel like my heart's been torn out, but better than last night." She smiled and kissed him.


End file.
